52 Ancestors Week 11- Catherine Butler

This week's theme is "Luck of the Irish". My closest Irish relative is Catherine Louise Butler. Her parents were both born in Ireland (at least according to the censuses), and immigrated to America before having children.
Catherine was born June 3, 1857 in Temperenceville, Ohio. She was the 7th of 11 children. On Feb 18, 1874 in St. Mary's Catholic Church, Tempernanceville, Ohio, she married John Francis Turner (she was 16, and their first child was born 5 months later...). They had 10 children, living mostly in Ohio and briefly across the border in West Virginia.

She died Oct 20, 1939 in a hospital in Columbus, Ohio. She was 82 years old.

*****
Parents:
John Butler (1799 – 1870)
Elizabeth (Isabel) Hughes (1830 – 1898)

Siblings:
Elizabeth Butler (1844-?)
Henry Butler (1846-?)
Anna Mariah Butler (1848-?)
Michael D. Butler (1850-1851)
Kevin Duran Butler (1852-?)
Rose Maladis Butler (1854-1892)
Arthur Ignatius Butler (1860-1944)
George Washington Butler (1862-1940)
Christine A. Butler (1864-?)
Francis Marion Butler (1867-1941)

Spouse:
John Francis Turner (1853 – 1912)

Children:
Henry Sylvester Turner (1874 – 1929)
Joseph Francis Turner (1876 – 1920)
Elanor Turner (1880 – 1894)
Anna Turner (1882 – 1930)
Clara Turner (1885 – 1942)
Lawrence A Turner (1889 – 1966)
George G. Turner (1892 – 1936)
Estella Marie Turner (1894 – 1935)
Grace Elizabeth Turner (1896 – 1923)
Fredrick Francis Turner (1898 – 1952)

52 Ancestors Wk 10 - Adele Pireaux

Adele Pireaux was born May 5, 1903 in Primrose Pennsylvania. She was the daughter of Emile and Irma Pireaux, who had recently immigrated from Belgium (the 4th of 8 kids).

On Octoer 30, 1922 she married Vital DeValkeneer. They had 4 children, 3 girls and a boy.


She died August 25, 1940 at the age of 37 of lobar pneumonia and pulmonary abscess. Her youngest child was only 2.

 *****
Parents:
Emile Francois Joseph Piraux (1871 – 1929)
Irma Henri (1872 – 1947)

Siblings:
Helene Piraux (1897-1899)
Marcelin Leopold Joseph Piraux (1899-1910)
Josephine Maria Piraux (1901-1953)
Joseph Pireaux (1905-?)
Louise Pireaux (1907-?)
Amil (Emile) J. Pireaux (1911-1977)
Ector Piraux (1914-?) 

Spouse:
Vital DeValkeneer (1897-1965)

Children:
Frances Erma DeValkeneer (1923-1979
Alma Celestine DeValkeneer (1930-1980)
Marlene Magdalene DeValkeneer (1934-2008)
Donald Eddie DeValkeneer (1938-2015)

52 Ancestors Week 9 - Alice Elizabeth Tavernier

This week's theme is "Close to Home". I chose to write about my great grandma Alice because she is the only great grandparent I actually remember meeting in real life. I'm told I met some others at family reunions when I was 1-3 years old, but I don't remember them. Her funeral is the first funeral I remember going to. She lived in a nearby town to where I grew up and I saw her several times a year.

She was born August 31, 1903 in McDonald, Pennsylvania. Her parents had immigrated in 1901 from Belgium along with her sister Renee. She was named Alice Elizabeth Tavernier (some paperwork shows her as Elizabeth Alice); Alice was also the name of her older sister that had died at 7 months old. Her mother died in 1910, when she was just 7 years old.

On November 19, 1924 she married Raymond Earl Turner in Wierton West Virginia. They lived in Ohio for a few years, then West Virginia for several years before moving back to Pennsylvania. They had 4 boys.

Raymond and Alice Turner (far left) at Merle's Wedding

After the death of her husband she moved to San Bernardino California to be closer to her children, living with her oldest when she died. She died June 24, 1993.

*****
Parents:
Charles Louis Tavernier (Jr) (1869-1919)
Rosalie Balieu (1874-1910)

Siblings:
Rene Tavernier (1898-?)
Alice Tavernier (1899-1900)

Spouse:
Raymond Earl Turner (1898-1979)

Children:
Louis Francis Turner (living)
Merle Edward Turner (1928-2005)
Arthur Lawrence Turner (1930-2010)
William Earl Turner (living)

52 Ancestors wk 8 - Thomas Edwards

This week I'm going to write about my great grandfather Thomas Edwards. He was born May 21, 1888 in Chase Nebraska. His parents immigrated from England in 1875. They lived in Nebraska for about 20 years. By 1909 they were living in Colorado. Thomas married Flora Hasemeyer on June 30, 1909 in Florence, Colorado. By 1917 they had moved to Carbon County, Utah, working in the coal mines.

On March 21, 1931, at 42 years old, he was killed in a mining accident, leaving behind his wife and 4 children.

*****
Parents:
Edward Edwards (1848-1923)
Mary Ann Gregory (1855-1926)

Siblings:
John Edwards (1877-1953)
Eddie Edwards (1879-?)
William Edwards (1882-1909)
Henry Edwards (1886-1912)
Robert Edwards (1894-1961)


Spouse:
Flora Sophia Maggie Hasemeyer (1889-1991)


Children:
Elizabeth Maryanne Edwards (1911-1937)
Edward Henry Edwards (1912-2012)
Helen Evaline Edwards (1913-2011)
Wilford George Edwards (1921-2008)

52 Ancestors Wk 7 - Vital DeValkeneer

Vital DeValkeneer was born on Christmas Day, 1897 in Gilly, Belgium. At the age of 14 he immigrated to the US with is family. His father and older brother came first, then the rest came a few months later. They came into America in Apr 1912 on the S. S. Carmania sailing from Liverpool, England. They immediately moved to Pennsylvania.

In 1920 they became naturalized citizens, through his father Cyrille's application. At the time he was working as a coal miner along with several of his brothers. Then in 1922 he married Adele Piraux, the daughter of other Belgian immigrants. By this time he was a barber, and by the 1930 census he owned a barbershop. Then during the depression he ended up going back to work in the coal mines and in the 1940 census is listed as a coal operator.

He lived in Pennsylvania for many years, until a few months prior to his death when moved to West Virginia to be closer to his children. He died in Wierton, WV on 16 Mar 1965, from lung cancer (probably because of years in the coal mines)

******
Parents:
Cyrille DeValkeneer (1856-1941)
Maria Francisca Heiremans (1858-1934)

Siblings:
Joseph DeValkeneer (1880-1966)
Maria Josepha DeValkeneer (1882-?)
Louis Andre DeValkeneer (1883-1971)
Cecilia Marie DeValkeneer (DeCook) (1886-1971)
Maria Celestina DeValkeneer (DeRicter) (1887-?)
Marie Louise DeValkeneer (Vandenderg) (1890-1974)
Victor DeValkeneer (1892-1975)
Camille Peter DeValkeneer (1895-1962)
Jeanne Helene DeValkeneer (1899-1900)
Alfred Joseph DeValkeneer (1902-1979)

Spouse: Adele Pireaux (1903-1940)

Children:
Frances Erma DeValkeneer (1923-1979)
Alma Celestine DeValkeneer (1930-1980)
Marlene Magdalene DeValkeneer (1934-2008)
Donald Eddie DeValkeneer (1938-2015)

52 Ancestors week 6 - Raymond Earl Turner

I got a little behind in doing the 52 ancestors series, so I'm going to try and play catch-up in the next couple weeks.

This week's theme at No Story Too Small is "So Far Away". I'm not going to do my most distantly located ancestor, but will do one that lived on the opposite side of the country form me (that totally counts right?)

Raymond Earl Turner was born in Somerset, Belmont County, Ohio on March 18, 1898. He was the 4th of 11 children born to Joseph Francis Turner and Sarah Carpenter. His early life was spent in Belmont and Noble counties in Ohio (they were near the border, and didn't move too far).

The Turner Homestead

In the 1920 census we find him living with his older sister Mary Anne and her husband. But, in 1924 he had moved to Weirton, West Virginia. In Weirton he married Alice Elizabeth Tavernier on Nov 19, 1924.

They lived in West Virginia for a while, spent some time in Ohio, then moved across the border to Pennsylvania by 1935. They had 4 boys.

On 27 Jan 1979 he died of Bronchopneumonia in Washington, PA and was buried in the Chestnut Ridge Cemetery, Florence, PA. He was 80 years old, and was survived by his wife, 4 children, several grandkids and 6 siblings.

Raymond and Alice 1961

***************
Parents:
Joseph Francis Turner (1876-1920)
Sarah Carpenter (1868-1958) 

Siblings:
Marion Elderee Turner (1894-1970)
Julia Ann Turner (1895-1988)
Mary Anne Turner(1897-1988)
Della Pearl Turner (1899-1982) ​
Robert Lester Turner (1900-1977)   ​
Carl Francis Turner (1903-1985)  ​
John B Turner (1905-1952)  ​
William Arthur Turner (1906-1980)  ​
Elmer Otto Turner (1908-1947)  ​
George Turner (1909-1985) 

Spouse:  Alice Elizabeth Tavernier (1903-1993)

Children:
Louis Francis Turner (Living) ​
Merle Edward Turner (1928-2005) ​
Arthur Lawrence Turner (1930-2010) ​
William Earl Turner (Living)​